Category: Things to do with kids: Shopping

If your grandchild can’t find a souvenir of his Seattle visit at this kitschy combination local institution/waterfront gift shop/ersatz museum of the absurd, he or she won’t be able to find it anywhere. But grandchildren still enjoy one of the oddest collections of stuff this side of Ripley’s Believe It or Not, including a petrified mummy named Sylvester, shrunken heads, a three-tusked walrus, and a two-headed bull. What’s not to love?

Contact no: (206) 682-5844

Location: 1001 Alaskan Way, Seattle, WA 98104

Learn more here.

An International District supermarket that’s more than just a grocery store, it’s also a cultural experience. There’s the bookstore, the gift shop, the Asian candy, a refrigerator case filled with more types of tofu than you ever thought existed and a food court featuring offerings from some of the best Asian restaurants in town. For a different twist on an American pastime, take your grandchild here to get something to-go before a Mariners game; maybe sushi and some nice bubble tea.

Contact no: (206) 624-6248

Location: 600 Fifth Avenue S, Seattle, WA 98104

Learn more here.

Built in a former food co-op, this store is smaller than its sister in Lake Forest Park, but noteworthy because it just expanded its childrens’ book department. There’s also a kids’ story time every Saturday and another branch of the same scrumptious bakery found in the original location, The Honey Bear.

Contact no: (206) 525-2347

Location: 6504 20th Avenue NE, Seattle, WA 98115

Learn more here.

Seattle’s biggest and best bookstore may not have a children’s section filled with toys, but it does have lots of children’s books and a castle for grandchildren to play on while grandparents can wait at a downstairs café and read. The store also sells used books and hosts author events.

Contact no: (206) 624-6600

Location: 101 South Main Street, Seattle, WA 98104

Learn more here.

One of the most kid-friendly bookstores in town, this shop is known for its large collection of children’s books (the owner even lists several children’s books in the staff favorites sections of the web site). You and your grandchildren can browse new and classic titles, put together puzzles and play with toys. If they see something they like, they can pull up a rocking chair and make sure they love it before you buy it.

Contact no: (206) 789-5006

Location: 2214 Northwest Market Street, Seattle, WA 98107

Learn more here.

REI’s flagship store is no staid outdoor outfitter. Instead, it’s a kid-friendly place with a play area, a mountain biking path to test out bikes, a shoe test trail, and the Pinnacle: a 65-foot climbing rock for adults and kids used to climbing on everything. Kids’ climbing classes are available or you can reserve a climbing time for you and your favorite tyke.

Contact no: (206) 223-1944

Location: 222 Yale Avenue N, Seattle, WA 98109

Learn more here.

It may be a working farmers market, but it’s also one of Seattle’s best known attractions with plenty for a grandchild to love; including street performers, salmon-throwing fishmongers, food stands, toy stores, a cheesemaker, a doughnut-making machine, and a scary monkfish that will frighten grandchildren and delight adults.

Contact no: (206) 682-7453

Location: Pike Street and First Avenue, Seattle, WA 98101

Learn more here.

One of the best costume and crafts places in the city, this store is a fun place to visit long before Halloween hits. The closer it gets to All Hallow’s Eve, however, the more of a madhouse it becomes. Still, it’s kid-friendly and a fun place to buy party decorations for anything you and the grandchildren might be celebrating. There are also locations in Issaquah and Everett.

Contact no: (206) 362-4810

Location: 11201 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle, WA 98125

Learn more here.

Although it’s just a multi-story downtown mall filled with high-end stores most of the year, it becomes an indoor winter wonderland at 6pm each night from Thanksgiving to Christmas Eve, when snow begins to fall. So, even when it’s a rainy Christmas outside, it’s a white one inside. The management company won’t say what’s in the flakes, but you might want to tell your grandchildren not to catch them in their mouths.

Contact no: (206) 405-2655

Location: 600 Pine Street, Seattle, WA 98101

Learn more here.

Golden Age is a comic book store for all ages: lunchboxes for kids, graphic novels for teens, collectibles of all sorts and even Elvis and I Love Lucy memorabilia for grandparents. With so many novelites, it’s easy for to lose track of time, but bring some money because if you take your grandchild here, you might not be able to get out without buying something.

Contact no: (206) 622-9799

Location: 1501 Pike Place, Seattle, WA 98101

Learn more here.